Hiding Beneath It All
by Hearts and Leaves
Summary: Sakura Mikan's back as DA's new Combat Instructor. They have no idea of the complications that lead to the active movement of the AAO and, consequently, of Mikan's return, and it all started with the sudden disappearance of Azumi Yuka. RevisedAndContinued
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: Typical disclaimer applies to this story and all of the published chapters in it.

This is the story of a group of students studying in a school called Alice Academy. The school is ever known to be a school for geniuses…or at least, that's what the public knows about. Only students who has special 'talents' called 'Alice' can be accepted, and the school ranks them according to their academics _and _their ability.

Usually, a school's level institution generally consists of primary and secondary schools. But in this school, the institutions are based from its caste system, the 'Star Rank'. Here we have the No Star, Single Star, Double Star, Triple Star, and the highly-acclaimed Special Star Department. So basically, a three year old can be in the Special Star Department so long as he has the brains and the ability to stay in that department.

Those students who are powerful enough - those who are mostly in the Special Star Department - to fight are those who practically earn the funds of the school. The school accepts underground missions from esteemed clients, and they send their students out to do the dirty work for them. However, those 'agents' of the school are the _only _ones who could leave the Academy temporarily, and only for their missions. Well, actually, those who have good grades also can take a leave and be with their family for a limit of two days, but its neigh on impossible because of the high grades one must have to accomplish.

Well, it's what the other departments think of it anyway.

Aside from the unusual tasks of the students, the school, of course, lets the students 'earn' their own allowances for their daily expenses. They are given varying amounts of allowances – they use 'rabbits' as their monetary system – according to their 'Star Rank'.

And have I mentioned that the school has an odd taste for their faculty staff?

To bear witness to that fact, let us unravel the story of a group of students at the Special Star Department, at the highly esteemed and most feared class of the entire student body...


	2. Chapter 2

_Hotaru looked at the others, looking to see if they recognized her too. She rolled her eyes when she realized that they didn't. In fact, they were staring at her like she was some sort of alien from another planet._

**Chapter 2**

Whereas the other departments were already in their lessons with the teachers, most classes at the Special Star Department were left alone with school work in their own classrooms. The teachers here aren't lazy as they seem; they just don't bother to teach them anyways since they're a.) Already smart without the teacher's meddling or b.) Too tired from the previous 'errand' to even go listening – which applies for the Class A of the department, better known as the 'Dangerous Abilities' Class, or DA.

However, the class wasn't left with any seatwork or lessons to self-study, but with a troublesome problem...

"You say what?!" Shouda Sumire shouted in shock, along with the rest of Class A who were staring dumbfounded at Koko.

"Koko, that's the most ridiculous rumor you've ever told us. Yuka-sensei hadn't told us she was retiring!" Umenomiya Anna added, shocked as Sumire is.

"But it's true! I passed by the faculty room on the way here and I heard them!" Koko said defensively and waved his arms like the hyped-up brat he always is. More rumblings and murmurs erupted, the floor already vibrating with their low voices.

Imai Hotaru rolled her eyes at the ridiculous sight in front of the room. The hell with their lack of brain cells if they thought that their gibberish would change anything. True, Azumi-sensei's sudden retirement was quite a shock, but it was the start of a new semester anyway.

However, her subconscious was also telling her that something _might've_ happened, and without their teacher as their source of news – the sort of news that the Academy has a knack for hiding from the DA - they might as well be graduating without knowing anything.

Even though she was trying very hard to block their voices out mentally, she could still hear their mouths spouting nonsense.

One statement irritated the hell out of her: "Maybe she was abducted by aliens and being dissected right now!"

Even if she was immune to the widespread disease called idiocy, one could only take so much. She picked up the blueprint for her latest invention from her desk and rolled it neatly with one swift flick of her wrist.

Well, if she was an _average_ student – as far as an average student with crazy 'talents' would go – she would have shuffled out of her seat and take the small distance on the way to the farthest bench at the corner of Class A's civilization. However, she was transferred to her current class after a year of unconsciously proving her 'worth' to the Academy, and so she only took half a second for her to be sitting next to Hyuuga Aoi with her blueprint already sprawled on the desk.

"Distracted, huh?" Aoi said in a mocking tone, clearly not surprised by Hotaru's act. She turned her gaze to the ruckus in front of them and sighed, "But, really, it _is_ disturbing to know that Azumi-sensei left us without a word, ne, Ruka-kun?"

Nogi Ruka turned to the sister of his best friend and nodded his agreement. "She usually tells us everything, even the whatnot's of the school."

The conversations inside the room continued on, until someone suddenly slid the front door open with a loud 'bang', giving the whole class a painful shock.

Hotaru, with her ever-observant eyes, narrowed at the man who was yet to make his presence known at the door. No matter how hell much noise the class was making, they should've managed to sense his presence, or even the tapping of his footsteps.

At last, the man – scratch that, a _girl_ – entered the classroom, bringing the class' record book with her. She looked around the room with intense chocolate eyes of hers, the breeze from the opened windows spreading her strawberry-vanilla scent across the room.

The inventor's eyes widened as she finally realized who this visitor is. And as she caught the brunette's attention, her suspicions were proven true when she smiled at her.

Hotaru looked at the others, looking to see if they recognized her too. She rolled her eyes when she realized that they didn't. In fact, they were staring at her like she was some sort of alien from another planet.

-x-x-x-

Heavy silence enveloped the room

Hyuuga Natsume could always ignore the rumblings of the class and go take a nap, but when Class A's quiet, it means something big was happening. And it takes a lot for one event to be included in the list of 'something big'.

And there was no denying the fact that he was also roused to wake up by the sweet breeze that reminded him of strawberries and vanilla.

He tossed the open manga covering his face and placed it down on his desk. With his feet still propped up on the desk, his sleepy eyes focused on a brunette in front of the classroom.

And then there he saw her. She was wearing an ankle-length black cloak with a portrait collar over a plain t-shirt and black leggings, her hair being pulled up by a messy ponytail. Judging by her outfit, she was still fresh from a long journey all the way here. Probably from another country.

"Who the hell is she?" He murmured to Ruka, who only shrugged while still staring at the visitor. And it looks like _no one_ knows who this visitor is, if the confused expressions of his classmates were to judge by...well, all of Class A except Imai, who looked slightly bemused - and a little bit irritated, as per usual - at the situation.

He turned his attention back at the visitor and watched the shifting of her eyes, noticing that she was looking at them as if she already knew them.

Then she suddenly looked straight at him, never batting an eyelash at the intense eye-contact they were sharing. It lasted not too long, but it certainly felt like an eternity for him as he saw the depths in her eyes, changing from one hue – well, that was certainly how it looked like – to another.

He felt his heart hammer on his chest when she smiled deviously at him.

-x-x-x-

Supposedly, the teachers were at the own cubicles, doing their own preparations for the first day. But the teachers were now huddled at the coffee table near the wall-sized windows, all bent down and staring intently at the crystal ball in front of them.

"Are you sure that she'd be able to manage that class?" Yamada Serina worriedly watched from her crystal ball, along with those teachers who still had their free time.

"Come on, it's her we're talking about! Of course she'll get through it – and who knows, she might be the _only one_ who could tame those wild monkeys." Anjo Narumi spoke with confidence.

"I wonder how the class will react to the situation…After all, it's been years since she…_left_." Misaki said, barely resisting the urge to replace the word 'left' with 'taken away'.

"Uh oh." Serina murmured. The rest of the teachers around the crystal ball gulped as they saw 'that' look in her eyes as she focused on the notorious 'bad boy' of the class.

Naughty. Devious. Sultry. Foreboding.

_Dangerous._

"Looks like she's going to handle that class a whole lot differently than the previous one." Jinno said. Well, whatever she was planning to do, it would certainly leave a huge impact with the students.

-x-x-x-

Their eyes widened in the size of plates when the brunette suddenly disappeared right in front of their eyes.

There was some panic at the corner of Natsume's mind. But before he could react, he found himself frozen when he felt a sudden gust of air pass by him.

"So you're the infamous principal's pet, Hyuuga Natsume, huh?"

How in the world did she manage to sneak behind him like that?

"Who are you?" He managed to speak in a calm tone despite his messy nerves.

He heard her chuckle, and it did nothing but raise his suspicion even more. No, not the kind of suspicion that made you think something bad was to happen, but the suspicion one felt with someone whose action seem secretive and calculating.

The brunette looked at every student inside the class and exaggeratedly sighed, as if she was disappointed, "Eh? You haven't felt my presence when I walked in, and now you just got sneaked up behind by someone you don't know. Haven't I already made every beating organ in this room stop?"

Silence.

She continued to taunt them, "Why aren't you putting up your guard already? Or do you prefer that I go first?"

That snapped them on their senses. In the blink of an eye, the students in the back row stood up and blocked her way in a half-circle while the others already stood up and already posed in different position, ready to tear her head off at the slightest bit of movement from her.

Just to fully make them alert, she took one step forward and made it look as if she was to attack those in front. As expected, someone already placed her hands behind her back in a tight grip. Another was holding her shoulders firmly, and the others grabbed her ankles. Natsume was in front of her, glaring her down with such a heated intensity.

She leveled Natsume's intense eyes with her own.

"Hm, so you're a head taller than me, huh?" She drawled in an uninterested voice, looking straight up at his stoic ruby eyes again.

The class just stared incredulously at her. She was being restrained in a room full of DA members, and all she could say was that he was goddamn taller than her?

"Your name." Natsume demanded, making sure to glare down at her so that she's aware that he was serious.

Oh, she saw it alright, but that was what made her giggle and disappear from their eyes again.

Hotaru rolled her eyes, again. However, she couldn't blame them for not remembering her. That kickass attitude of hers and that taunting eyes was never the idiot they spent the earlier years of their life at the department.

There was hardly a blur in the room, and then they found themselves all knocked down to the floor. It could have been some sort of Alice, but they surely felt a hand knocking them all down. And if she _did_ use her Alice, they should've at least felt it.

All of them could only move their heads and look up at the brunette, who was smiling at them. She was leaning on the table with her palms as her support. Taking a deep breath, she closed her eyes and looked at them again. The horrified expressions on their faces made her even more amused.

"Good morning. I'm Sakura Mikan, and I'm your new Homeroom teacher, as well as your new Combat Instructor, and..." She looked at Hotaru first, the only one she left out with the surprise attack. The inventor nodded.

Mikan smiled at them with her usual sunny smile, the one they were all familiar with.

"…it's nice to be back, guys."

(To be continued…)


	3. Chapter 3

"_It's okay; I enjoyed __our little game of 'tag' back there…" – she smirked at him suddenly then leaned closer to his ear – "…and I'll be looking forward to playing it again, Black Cat."_

**Chapter 3**

Natsume observed the rest of the class huddled over the new homeroom teacher like swarms of bees…heck, even Imai was in the crowd this time. They were now surrounding her like she was some sort of celebrity…

…and said celebrity was the one who knocked all of the students in Class A in a whiplash.

Aoi, when meeting new people, would usually stay in one corner or stay behind Natsume all the time to avoid attention. But now she was along the crowd, smiling all the while as she instantly got along well with the new teacher.

_The teacher's name was Sakura Mikan_, Natsume recalled, _so this is the one they had been mistakenly calling Aoi._

When the two fire siblings first transferred in the class, they started to accidentally call Aoi 'Mikan'. When she asked them about the name though, they were reluctant to entertain her question.

They both knew that something happened before they were admitted to the class and that the so-called 'Mikan' was a sore subject, so the two of them only ignored their often-committed mistakes and waited for them to get used to her real name. After a while, they started calling her by her own name, and the mystery of the one named 'Mikan' was purposely forgotten.

It seemed to go on and on for hours. They would ask a question, and when she gets uneasy, they'll immediately ask another so as not to scare her away and cut their reunion.

From what he managed to hear through their multiple conversations, Sakura was the previous Rank 1. Although they were pretty close at the age of eight, they didn't know about her alice, other than it belonged to the Dangerous Abilities Class.

Lastly, she was best friends with Imai and Ruka.

And they haven't said a single thing to him nor to Aoi about it.

Natsume felt his blood boil. Not that he was irked by being left out – in fact, he preferred to be out of everyone's attention for just one time – but because he felt that unusual uneasiness towards her. It was as if his instincts told him to keep his guard up at this time…and he doesn't even know what he was supposed to be cautious of. Not knowing about something irked him the most, and that's why he only felt one thing toward this new teacher:

Clueless suspicion.

Of course, he wouldn't make it last that long. Soon enough, he was going to find out something about this teacher of theirs and finally figure out why he's feeling so cautious around her.

"Hey, why don't we throw a party for Mikan's return?" Kitsuneme and Yome Koko suggested at the same time.

"But I still need to sleep; I have to prepare for classes tomorrow," Mikan whined, pouting like a little child, in direct contrast to her intimidating persona earlier.

"Don't be such a party-pooper, Mikan. We'll have a party and that's _final_." Sumire spoke in a way that left nothing to contradict with.

Everyone in their group-huddle nodded in unison. Others were already voicing out their ideas for the celebration.

"Fine! Fine!" Mikan surrendered, her both hands raised in a sign of defeat, "I'll be outside for a little while. Call me if you're finished already."

_Perfect_, Natsume thought as he watched her sigh before opening the oak door and leaving the room.

-x-x-x-

_Where the hell is that whacko teacher? He_ growled to himself as he searched for her at the grounds.

He planned on following her, but suddenly she was leaping from one roof to another before he lost sight of her.

There was something about her…something that makes him think that they should be cautious for. Even though the class seems to fully trust her, Natsume has his instincts telling him that she isn't as innocent as what his classmates seem to be aware of.

Besides it's been years since they last saw her again, and who knows what she changed into?

She could be a bloody spawn of the demented Organization for crying out loud.

After a while, he finally caught track of the auburn-haired girl at Central Town. She was bouncing off from one store to another, getting friendly with the shopkeepers who greeted her. It seems they know her very well…and no doubt Sakura was taking liberty in monopolizing the town by herself while classes were still ongoing.

Standing on a roof of a random coffee shop, Natsume saw Mikan enter a candy store. He leapt down the shop and hid at an alleyway beside the store and watched her from afar. Since the store's front only had glass door – which was widely opened – and walls, it was no hard task eavesdropping on their conversation

"Well, it's been years since I last seen ya', Sakura. How's life?" An energetic old man in an apron asked the equally-energetic eighteen-year old teacher who was ogling at each kind of candy she saw at the store.

"Well, hard as always. Hey pops, do you have chocolate-flavored Howalons in stock?" Mikan asked eagerly.

"Of course! Anything for you, Mikan-chan." The man gave a chuckle before he went to the backroom of the store.

Mikan smiled and returned to adoring the sweets again. This was second to what she had been looking forward to since her return to the Academy. Central Town always has a creative way of creating sweets, and frankly, she can never get tired of them.

Even the shopkeepers still remember her, and for those who came only after she was gone had already heard of her.

Mikan looked around at the brightly-illuminated candy shop, the pristine yellow walls hidden from sight by glass cases filled with different kinds of candies. The owner of the shop was Okizawa Haru, an acquaintance of hers whom she met while she was still under training. He served as her source of snack goodies and of the ongoings at the school.

"Here are three boxes of chocolate Howalons. You don't have to pay for it; consider this as a welcome-back present for you." Haru smiled in a fatherly way.

Mikan looked uncertain. "Haru-san, you really don't have to. I have enough money with me to pay for—"

"Nonsense! Nonsense!" Haru waved his hand in the air, dismissing Mikan's thoughts. "It's the least I could do for you after all the help you've given me."

Mikan was still reluctant, but she smiled at the middle-aged man and said, "Thanks, Haru-san. With that gentleman attitude of yours, I wouldn't be surprised if you'd manage to nag that pretty shopkeeper next door."

Hakku swept his ash-blonde hair in a mock-flirtatious manner and winked at her, "Working on it, Mikan, working on it."

Mikan only laughed in humor before bidding him goodbye with a smile and leaving the shop.

_What did that shopkeeper meant by 'help' done by Mikan? _Natsume wondered.

_Maybe she was a charity worker back then_, Natsume's mind told him, but there was some nagging feeling in his gut that's telling him otherwise. That there was more to it than the obvious 'help'.

Looks like he ended up being more confused by what he's doing, rather than being able to figure things out.

-x-x-x-

When one speaks of a student from the Academy saved from abduction, one's to say that it's all thanks to the Dangerous Abilities Class, better known as the Class A of the Special Star Department.

However, as true as that statement is, there's far more to it than meets the eye. The students don't just rush out in the open and charge out without knowing _anything_ about their mission. No, of course not. It's not that easy.

The people who gives the finer details of the missions are the ones at the Alice Corps, a special organization made by the Academy for the Academy. Consisted of talented graduates from the school itself, they are the ones who are sent out on the open, doing the 'dirty jobs' the DA were credited with. The DA only served as a back-up.

Of course, that's not even _half_ of the responsibilities set out for the Corps. They recruit alice-users from the outside to be trained specially for the purpose of being an agent for the Corps. They are the ones who mostly fight those mercenaries from the Z Organization; those who were _forever_ bound to protect the Academy and all of its students. Of course, education is still given to the trainees, but the Corps serves as their school and home for the rest of their existence.

Each worker at the Corps is divided among groups matched to their specialties to ensure that every mission is done completely and thoroughly.

So why need the DA to be sent out?

The purpose of this class is to train the _students_ at the Academy to be potentially able to join the organization – unless, by any slim chance, they managed to defy the higher-ups.

The headquarters of the Corps occupies the underground of the Academy. Aside from the purpose of easier access, it is made that way so that people wouldn't be the headless chicken and find the HQ by mistake – the whole 'underground-base' idea is so cliché that others would think that it's somewhere disguised as an inactive volcano.

However, that's not the _only_ location of the Corps. Several private places – secretly owned by the Academy – also serve as the base for the organization; connected together in a web-like structure with the HQ as the center.

Inside the very-business like underground building was Harada Misaki and Andou Tsubasa, wearing normal clothes that seemed so out of place with the black suits the others wore…with the exception of a raven-haired man cloaked in white with a stethoscope hanging from his neck. His deep amethyst eyes – a shade darker than her younger sister's – focused on the pair in front of him.

"Give me valid reasons why I should come with you." Imai Subaru demanded in a calm tone. He stood in front of them with his arms crossed, his foot resisting the urge to tap in annoyance.

Tsubasa sighed. "Oh come on, Subaru. It's just _above_ the ground, you know. You could still keep in contact with the HQ even while you're at the Academy. And—"

Misaki interrupted him with a raised hand and spoke for herself. "We need you so that we could keep an eye on Mikan. You're the only one she trusts with her condition, and it will definitely help her if you're the one who's going to treat her when something goes wrong. As much as I hate to admit it, we don't know _a single thing_ about her 'talents', and you're the only one we can approach. The higher-ups already gave us the permission to get people needed, so please?"

Subaru glared at her for a bit while before he sighed in defeat, "Fine, I will. And besides, it's high time I visit that money-crazed sister of mine."

Tsubasa had his shoulders slumped and glared at the man with beady, comical eyes. "You're too stubborn for your own good, you know that?"

"Blame genetics for it."

-x-x-x-

"Ah! Chiaki-san! Looking young as always, eh?" Mikan greeted the umpteenth shopkeeper.

Natsume's feet were already aching with blisters from following her to and fro the town. It wouldn't be too hard if she could only visit the shops door-to-door, but no…she just _had_ to walk from one side of the town to another.

He had a slight notion that she was doing it on purpose, but he quickly shoved the idea into the farthest corner of his brain. No one has been able to catch Natsume sneaking on them. Ever.

He wasn't named the 'Black Cat' for no reason.

"And you're still a smooth-talker, Mikan-chan. Come on in, come in!" An old woman with maroon hair and deep green eyes offered. Mikan replied with an enthusiastic "Hai!" and went inside the smoothie parlor.

Natsume made a move to go nearer the shop, but he found his feet heavy to move. He cursed under his breath in annoyance. The second try worked, and now he was painfully limping towards the shop while trying hard not to get unnoticed.

He stayed at the outside of the shop, at its west side wherein rows of paneled windows were at view. He crouched down and cursed when he felt the pain in his feet increase in intensity. He slowly crept to the fifth window, trying hard not to get caught. Finally, he stopped.

Above him was the window where Mikan and the shopkeeper were nearest.

He tried to apply minimal pressure on his feet as possible while listening to them. "My, my, look at how much you've grown! You're a full-grown woman now huh? I bet the guys are drooling at you feet when you came back." Chiaki said.

"Of course not, stop saying such outrageous things, Chiaki-san." Mikan profusely denied.

Natsume couldn't help but agree with the shopkeeper. She was quite a look…

…but she was just too damn mysterious.

After a well-spent conversation and a few greets with the customers – she was just too much of a socialite for her own good – she finally went out of the shop.

Natsume was able to take his rest while she was at the shop, so the blisters on his feet were the only things keeping him from doing his job to his fullest.

He paused and hid behind a tall advertisement bulletin at the middle of the sidewalk when he saw her stop in her tracks. She looked back at the building of the Special Star Department, and then to the other surrounding buildings. It appeared to Natsume that she was looking out cautiously.

Knowing that he was now going to find out something, he followed her diligently as she continued to walk down the cemented patio of the town.

His assumption was proved right when she suddenly rounded a corner beside an unused stall. He immediately followed suit, and what he saw was a small dark alleyway.

He took one step further, and suddenly he felt immense pain in his stomach and nape. Through scattered thoughts, he realized that he was pinned at a wall by none other than the same person he had been stalking throughout the whole afternoon.

"Caught you." Her voice was dripping with dangerous humor.

The arm that was pinning his neck was suffocating him; his vision started to get blurred. Everything slowly dimmed, and all he was aware of was that he was falling to the ground.

An arm caught him, and it was the same arm that suffocated him to death earlier. She helped him stood up, and the familiar sound of bells rang in his ears.

"Sorry I kept you walking around like that, Hyuuga-san. I must've exhausted you."

Although his head was hung down from the pain and that he was staring at the earth beneath him, he still couldn't help but widen his eyes in bewilderment. Wasn't she just ready to kill him a short while ago?

Before he could reply, he felt his body grow numb. _The hell with her surprise attacks._

-x-x-x-

"Hey, you okay?" Her voice was starting to grow worried when he had yet to reply.

Had she hit him too hard?

Mikan grumbled something low in her breath before placing his arm on her shoulders and helping him up.

-x-x-x-

The party was at full blast…literally. Speakers made the floor slightly vibrate as hip-hop beats started to fill the room. The chairs were thrown unceremoniously outside, and to give the night-time illusion, they covered the windows with pitch-black curtains from the stock room to prevent light from outside to go in. The place was illuminated with glow-in-the-dark drawings on the walls and the ceiling. To give it a final touch, different colors of streamers were glowing above them, adding more light in the room.

And since no one would've cared if they're legal or not, a monochrome bar – who knows where they got that - was at the corner of the room with Kitsuneme as the bartender, the mountain of bottles behind him.

The DJ of the night – or the afternoon, to be precise – was Koko, standing behind a table and clicking rhythmically on a laptop - from Hotaru – that were wired to the humongous speakers standing on his both sides. It was a miracle how he still managed to not get deaf.

Anna and Nonoko were offering drinks here and there, occasionally dropping their trays and dancing to the music when everybody already had their drinks.

Yuu, the goody-two-shoes president of the class, was wildly dancing in the middle with Shouda and her usual group of girls, enjoying the fruits of their efforts – as they were the once who gave the design for the party.

Probably Yuu was forced to gulp down a drink or two, because there's _no way_ he'd be dancing like an itching monkey and laughing like a drunken fool…or maybe he already is.

Hotaru, Ruka and Aoi were huddled at one of the makeshift tall tables they had inside the room with Mikan.

And Natsume? He's at Kitsuneme's corner with Mochu, downing his umpteenth shot of tequila. He was leaning on the counter top with his elbow propping his head up, his eyes staring mindlessly at his glass.

"Woah, Natsu, never thought you had _that_ much resistance on alcohol." Mochu commented, still holding his second glass of Bloody Mary.

Actually, Natsume's head felt like a thousand monkeys were jumping on his head, and his vision was blurring and becoming unstable.

And usually, he wouldn't stick up for these kinds of parties.

After the scenario at the alley, she escorted him to the clinic and waited for him until the nurse was done. He would've fussed over being treated like a kid, but he was too weak to argue with her.

And somehow, he enjoyed the presence of her as she ran her fingers down his hair while he was laying 'unconsciously' on the clinic bed.

"Hn." Was Natsume's nonchalant reply.

"Man, you've got it really bad." Kitsuneme off-handedly said with a knowing grin on his face.

At Mikan's table, Aoi watched her brother silently.

"Nee, Mikan-chan, did something happen between you and Nii-chan?" She suddenly asked, interrupting their current conversation. Hotaru and Ruka followed the little fire-caster's gaze and saw Natsume.

"Yeah, well, he followed me all throughout Central Town. I must've tired him." Mikan said as if she was only commenting about the weather, receiving gawking looks from the three.

Mikan only shrugged. "I kinda figured out that he was following me after I left the department, so I thought that I should take the chance to observe him too. A good one, but he lacks training. How did you know, Aoi?"

Aoi took one look at Natsume and to Mikan before replying, "Nii-chan wouldn't stay in parties like this, and he's not even scolding me about drinking." She motioned to her half-empty glass of wine.

"Hmm…" Mikan mumbled before speaking again, "Ruka, he's the 'childhood friend' you told me about, right?"

Ruka nodded, "Yeah. It was a surprise for me when the two of them were suddenly transferred here. I mean, Natsume and Aoi could've nailed the top ranks at our class right away, but the higher-ups kept them under surveillance because—"

"…Of the accident that involved them before they were sent here. That's why they were held at the Three-Star Department while you were immediately accepted at this class."

"How did you know?" Aoi asked, pertaining to the 'accident'.

"I heard it from the outside." Mikan replied nonchalantly.

"Well, it seems like he's taken a liking to you." Hotaru finally spoke.

Ruka and Aoi nodded their agreement while Mikan spoke an innocent, "Really?"

"He's been eyeing you ever since you entered the classroom." Hotaru pointed out.

"Isn't he just curious about me?" Mikan asked again. This was getting silly; are they saying that the Hyuuga's interested in her?

"Wanna find out?" Aoi asked with an evil glint in her eye. Oh, she might get hit in the head by her ever-_adorable_ brother, but the possibilities of the situation were too difficult to resist.

Surprisingly, Mikan grinned impishly. "Sure."

Hotaru and Ruka watched as the two headed off to the drinking corner. Ruka transferred his seat beside Hotaru and whispered, "When are we going to ask about her training? I know that she already told us about her training, but I think there's something more that happened during the past eight years."

"She'll open up as soon as she's ready…if she doesn't, well, I needed to test out my upgrade for the Baka Gun anyway." Hotaru replied while not taking her eyes off the two who were already talking with Natsume.

"I guess so…" Ruka drawled on, and then an image of Aoi's evil expression popped in his mind.

"Imai?"

"Nogi."

"I think you've been way too close with Aoi. She's becoming more and more like you."

-x-x-x-

"Hyuuga?" Someone's voice called out.

_The damn hellspawn herself_.

"Hey Nii-chan" Aoi greeted, sitting on a stool beside her brother and started to engage Kitsuneme in a conversation. The bartender cocked his head at Natsume and Mikan, shooting a look at Aoi pointedly. Aoi winked at him, earning her a humored laugh from Koko who was reading their minds from afar.

"You still offended about earlier?" Mikan asked, sitting beside Natsume on the other side and faced him.

And for the record-breaking third time, Natsume was surprised. Wasn't _she_ the one supposed to be offended? He was the one who followed her throughout the afternoon without recognizing the threat that he might be found out. He only got what he deserved from her, hadn't he?

He wasn't really being a good saint about it, but he was, once again, struck by the contradiction.

"He thinks that you're the one who's supposed to be offended, Mikan-chan." Someone popped in the conversation.

Mikan looked at Koko incredulously – well, she already felt his presence approaching them, so why would she be surprised? – before looking at Natsume with a thoughtful look on her face.

Aoi and Kitsuneme didn't bother to pretend having a conversation anymore, and even Hotaru and Ruka were openly watching the scene…actually, everyone was watching the scene.

For what felt like an hour, Mikan snapped out of her contemplating gaze and smiled at Natsume in a way he pictured an angel should look like.

"It's okay; I enjoyed our little game of 'tag' back there…" – she smirked at him suddenly then leaned closer to his ear – "…and I'll be looking forward to playing it again, Black Cat."

To top it all off, Mikan blew warm air into his sensitive ears, causing a delicious shiver to run down his spine.

It took a while for Natsume to recover from the intense sensations weaving throughout his body. Just what is it with her and her split-personalities?

"Tch."

The class watched their infamous Rank 1 walk out of the room, before turning their heads at Mikan who was currently with a cruelly attractive smirk across her face.

-x-x-x-

Natsume let his body fall unto the soft surface of his bed, sighing and running his fingers through his hair.

He remembered the way their bodies were almost touching back there, and his body gave an involuntary shiver.

He looked up at the dim room's ceiling and rested his arm on his forehead, taking his time to calm his rapidly-beating heart.

"Sakura Mikan, huh?" He mumbled to himself before unknowingly showing a contemplative smirk on his face.

-x-x-x-

The ones inside the Class A's room howled in laughter. Making Natsume look flushed was the greatest achievement they ever witnessed.

"Wow, never thought you'd be able to wrap him around your finger, Mikan. I'm quite impressed." Aoi teased, mockingly nudging her elbow on Mikan's arm.

"You're definitely a natural seductress." Sumire told her, approaching Mikan with the rest of the class.

"I wasn't seducing him, Permy." Mikan told them honestly. When she saw all of them incredulously looking at her, she shrugged innocently, "He's quite interesting."

The class exchanged looks before smiling knowingly at Mikan. Looks like something 'interesting' will happen this school year too.

(To be continued...)


End file.
